The Andromeda Galaxy (/ænˈdrɒmᵻdə/), also known as Messier 31, M31, or NGC 224, is a spiral galaxy approximately 780 kiloparsecs (2.5 million light-years) from Earth. It is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way and was often referred to as the Great Andromeda Nebula in older texts. It received its name from the area of the sky in which it appears, the constellation of Andromeda, which was named after the mythological princess Andromeda.

Being approximately 220,000 light years across, it is the largest galaxy of the Local Group, which also contains the Milky Way, the Triangulum Galaxy, and about 44 other smaller galaxies. Despite earlier findings that suggested that the Milky Way contains more dark matter and could be the largest in the grouping, the 2006 observations by the Spitzer Space Telescope revealed that Andromeda contains one trillion (1012) stars: at least twice the number of stars in the Milky Way, which is estimated to be 200–400 billion.

Over 40 international artists have donated music for the Nihon Kizuna compilation in aid of the Japan disaster relief effort. Nihon Kizuna, or 日本絆 in Japanese roughly translates as ‘bond of friendship with Japan’.

Following the earthquake and tsunami which devastated the northern coast and prefectures of Japan on Friday March 11th 2011, a small group of Tokyo-based artists (from Japan, Ukraine and France) and one visiting London-based journalist (from Italy) decided to pull their efforts and contacts together to do the only thing they could to help the country and its people – sell music to raise awareness of the devastation that hit the area and raise money for its people and the relief effort.

The motivation behind Nihon Kizuna was simple: in face of the feeling of helplessness many felt here in Japan in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami this compilation seemed like the best way to express our support and love for the country and its people. Amid widespread scaremongering and panic from the foreign media it felt only right to stand tall alongside the people of Japan who have always welcomed foreign artists and musicians with open arms and hearts.

The compilation was put together in five days thanks to the internet. Every artist and/or label on the compilation donated a track, either previously released, unreleased or created especially for the occasion. Many of the tracks, artists and labels on the compilation have a direct relation to Japan, further highlighting the connection many people outside of the country feel towards Japan in the current situation. It’s no small thing to say that many of those involved feel a kinship to the country regardless of whether or not they’ve ever lived in or visited the country.

Nihon Kizuna is released on Friday March 18th using Bandcamp as a selling platform and with payments handled via Paypal. This will be followed by a release on iTunes Japan in the week of March 21st – as many Japanese residents do not use Paypal.

The compilation will cost £10, $15, 1,500Y or 12E and there will be the possibility to donate more should people want to via Bandcamp. The compilation will be available on iTunes Japan until the end of March, while the Bandcamp page and this website will stay up for the foreseeable future.

All proceeds from the compilation will be given to the Japan Red Cross directly.

Represented on the compilation are over 7 countries, 40 artists and 10 labels.

This news is for immediate release. We ask that you please help us spread the word about this as far as possible to encourage people to give their money for a good cause. With over 40 tracks not only does this compilation constitute value for money it will also help with the relief and reconstruction effort in Northern Japan.